Postgraduate - CourseMaster of International Development Practice

Students who commenced study in 2015 should refer to this course entry for direction on the requirements; to check which units are currently available for enrolment, refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course.

This course entry applies to students commencing this course in 2015 and should be read in conjunction with information provided in the 'Faculty information' section of this Handbook by the Faculty of Arts.

Unit codes that are not linked to their entry in the Handbook are not available for study in the current year.

Description

Equitable and environmentally sustainable development remains a pressing global concern. Complex political, economic, cultural and ecological challenges contribute to extreme poverty, reduced health, environmental vulnerability and fragile governance affecting the well-being of millions of people worldwide. These multidimensional challenges require professionals with the practical skills and analytical capacity to help address economic, political and environmental vulnerabilities at the community, national and global levels.

The Monash Master of International Development Practice offers a multi-disciplinary applied approach to the theory and practice of sustainable development. Delivered by specialists from the humanities and social sciences, medicine, business and economics, education and law, this course delivers rigorous research training along with project management and leadership skills development within an interdisciplinary core curriculum. Foundation theory and practice units address questions ranging from the causes of wealth disparity, and the growth of development thought and practice, to the impact of politics, economics, culture, history and natural resources on inequality.

Students may elect to specialise in one of four streams:

democracy, justice and governance

gender, conflict and security

crisis, change and management

sustainable resource management.

Opportunities for fieldwork, study abroad and internship engagement is a strength of the course which includes options to engage in field-schools at sites of significant development practice such as South Africa and the Asia-Pacific region. Options to include language extension in individual programs are available.

Graduate employment opportunities may include human rights advocacy, aid agencies in government and non-government sectors, the Fair Trade business sector, community organisations, and international institutions such as the United Nations and the World Bank.

demonstrate advanced reading and communication skills, both written and verbal

demonstrate a thorough understanding of research methodology and ethics, and an ability to plan and conduct, an independent research project in one of the aspects represented in the program.

Credit for prior studies

Students may be eligible for credit to a maximum of 50 per cent of the course requirements for previous graduate-level studies.

Credit or exemptions up to a maximum of 24 points is available for a bachelor degree level qualification in a related discipline, and a further 24 points is available for honours degree level qualification in a related discipline.

Therefore, students who have completed an:

undergraduate degree and a graduate certificate (or equivalent) in a relevant discipline* must complete 72 points as outlined in Structure 2 under 'Requirements'.

honours degree with a major in a relevant discipline* must complete 48 points as outlined in Structure 3 under 'Requirements'.

* Relevant disciplines include humanities or social sciences.

Maximum credit allowed

48 credit points

Structure

This course consists of core and elective units, including capstone units which allow the student to demonstrate their understanding of the course and the skills they have acquired.

Students complete one of the following structures as determined by any credit granted for prior studies:

Structure 1: 96 points over two years full-time, or part-time equivalent

Structure 2: 72 points over one and a half years full-time, or part-time equivalent

Structure 3: 48 points over one year full-time, or part-time equivalent.

Note: Students eligible for credit for prior studies may elect not to receive the credit and complete one of the higher credit-point options if they choose.

All students must complete a minimum of 48 credit points at level 5, and so should take care when choosing between units offered at level 4 and 5 (where this option is offered).

Units are 12 credit points unless otherwise stated.

Requirements

Structure 1 - 96 credit points

Students must complete:

(a.) in their first year of study, two of the following 6-point preparatory units (12 points):

(g.) Students intending to take fieldwork requiring knowledge of Indonesian or Spanish are encouraged to take language units as part of their electives if they do not have a background in these languages.